Create custom workflows
The censhare standard workspace contains predefined workflow states and workflows that represent the production cycle of product publications, multimedia campaigns, and other projects. The workflows can be extended, simplified, or adjusted, if necessary.
User roles
Solution developers
Solution administrators
Prerequisites
Before you customize the standard workflows, read the introduction to Workflows for dedicated solutions.
Introduction
The standard workflows of the censhare dedicated solutions are aligned with the censhare governance model and ready-to-use for production environments like Product information management or Publication management. Workflows vary widely in different organization and production units. You can create custom workflows and workflow steps to suit your organization's needs.
Customize workflows
You can adjust or replicate the standard workflows in the censhare Admin Client, in the Master data/Workflows table.
In the censhare Admin Client, activate the Admin mode.
Double-click the workflow that you want to edit in the Master data/Workflows table.
If you wish, change the Name and the Description for each language.
Select the Domain and 2nd domain for which the workflow is available. For example, select the Product domain for the Product workflow, the Media domain for the Media workflow, and the Content domain for the Content workflow.
If you wish, change the Default step. The standard step is Plan.
The Default asset type is the corresponding asset type. You can specify a sub-type or change the default type.
Tip: If you need additional workflows, create a new entry in the Master data/Workflow table and follow the steps above.
Customize workflow steps
The workflows comprise the same steps Plan ► Enrich ► Approve ► Ready to use ► Public. The steps are mapped to the respective workflow states In planning / In production / In approval / Complete / Published (The Error state is not part of the workflow itself).
You can add, edit, or remove workflow steps according to the processes in your organization. If you add workflow steps, they must be mapped to one of the standard workflow states:
Note: For the following steps, activate the Admin mode in the censhare Admin Client.
Edit workflow steps
Important: The completion state of standard workflow steps is set to 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, and 50%. For production systems with task management, adjust these values to 100%.
To edit a Workflow step, double-click the entry in the Workflow steps area of the Workflow configuration dialog.
If you wish, enter a new Name and Description for each language.
If you wish, change the Sorting of the step.
Adjust the Completion state percentage. The completion state is used to monitor and show the progress. It is not intended to track times and efforts. The standard steps use increments of ten percent. Choose an appropriate value.
In the State field, select the Workflow state mapping of the step. Several workflow steps can be mapped to the same Workflow state.
The fields Default target, Checked out step and Trigger event are optional. Configure these steps for automatic actions associated with the workflow step.
To save the workflow step, click OK.
To save the workflow, click OK again.
Add workflow steps
To add a new Workflow step, click in the Workflow steps area of the Workflow configuration dialog.
Enter an ID. The ID must be unique within a workflow. The standard steps use increments of one hundred. Choose an ID between the previous step and the following step.
The deployment of workflow definitions with workflow steps and workflow states in a masterdata.xml file can overwrite already existing workflow definitions when deployed to another system!
Workflows, workflow steps and workflow states are identified by their IDs. These IDs are numbers that are manually created. The IDs must be unique: Workflow IDs must be unique within all workflow IDs. Workflow state IDs must be unique within all workflow state IDs. Workflow step IDs must be unique within their workflow definition.
The censhare dedicated solutions also provide a set of workflows with workflow steps and workflow states. They use the reserved range from 900.000 to 1.000.000 for workflow IDs and workflow states. Do not use this range for custom workflow IDs or workflow state IDs! They can be overwritten if the censhare dedicated workflows/workflow states are installed or updated!
If a workflow ID in a masterdata.xml file is also used by a workflow in the censhare dedicated solutions, this definition is changed by the masterdata.xml file. If workflow step ID within this workflow definition also is the same, this definition is changed, too. If a workflow state ID in a masterdata.xml file is also used by a standard workflow state definition, this definition is changed by the masterdata.xml file.
Enter a Name and Description for each language.
In the Sorting field, enter an integer to sort the steps in the desired order (for example, in drop-down menus). The standard steps use increments of ten. Choose a sorting between the previous step and the following step.
Enter a Completion state percentage. The completion state is used to monitor and show the progress. It is not intended to track times and efforts. The standard steps use increments of ten percent. Choose an appropriate value.
In the State field, select the Workflow state mapping of the step. Several workflow steps can be mapped to the same Workflow state.
The fields Default target, Checked out step and Trigger event are optional. Configure these steps for automatic actions associated with the workflow step.
To save the workflow step, click OK.
To save the workflow, click OK again.
Remove workflow steps
You can remove steps if they are not required for a workflow. Removing a workflow step also removes the mapping of this step to a workflow state. Consequently, the respective workflow state is skipped in the workflow.
To remove a Workflow step:
Select the workflow step to remove in the Workflow steps area of the Workflow configuration dialog.
Click in the toolbar of the Workflow steps area.
To save the workflow, click OK.
Result
Customized, production-ready workflows for your censhare solution.